What if the two biggest stars of the mobility movement got together, produced a DVD, and created a set of the best equipment? What in the world would that look like?
Well, I can tell you: it would look like the Treat While You Train Kit. A joint effort from Yoga Tune Up‘s Jill Miller and MobilityWOD’s Kelly Starrett.
About the Authors
Miller has been in the movement business for over 27 years, has appeared on a bevy of national TV shows, and is the author of a new book, The Roll Model. Starrett is a physical therapist who became known through the CrossFit world, but has worked with everyone from special forces operators to Olympians. He is the author of two well-reviewed books, Becoming a Supple Leopard and Ready to Run.
READ THE REVIEWS: Becoming a Supple Leopard and The Roll Model
What would these minds two put together? Pretty much everything you could possibly need to improve your movement. And not just if you’re an athlete. The lessons you will learn from the DVDs and the techniques you can use with the tools provided can help everyone from desk workers to those recovering from injury. So don’t let the “Train” part of the title scare you off if you’re new to fitness or just looking to move and feel better.
“This kit is great for someone who is brand new to self care and wants the tools and instruction to get a broad and thorough education.”
The Equipment
With mobility being all the rage in the fitness industry, there are innumerable pieces of mobility gear available to buy. Some are cool, some are useful, and a lot of them are either unnecessary or junk. If you’re a self-care newbie or you just want to make shopping easy, the Treat While You Train Kit is a great option as it covers all the bases as far as densities and sizes of balls.
The Treat While You Train Kit Includes:
- 2 – Yoga Tune Up Therapy Ball (and bag)
- 2 – Therapy Ball PLUS (and bag)
- 1 – Alpha Ball
- 1 – Coregeous Ball
- 1 – Mesh drawstring tote bag
And don’t just think, “Oh, those little white tote bags are cute,” or “,What the heck are the bags for?” Those mesh drawstring bags actually are for something. You can use them to easily keep two balls together so you actually get an additional double-ball tool out of it.
Yoga Tune Up Therapy Balls PLUS and Tote
The DVDs
The Treat While You Train Kit comes with two instructional DVDs amounting to 155 minutes worth of video. The DVDs are of excellent quality – good sound and lighting, nice graphics, and slick editing. If you’re used to watching Starrett on his YouTube videos, you might find it a bit strange to see him on the set of what appears to be a high-budget project. But these DVDs aren’t just for “hard core” garage-gym types. They are clearly designed to reach a broader audience, and the high production quality reflects that.
READ: How Kelly Starrett’s Mobility Seminar Ruined Me
For those who are new to the kind of treatment Kelly and Jill are recommending, there is an introduction chapter on the first DVD that explains the basic concepts behind their approach. It’s also a great refresher for anyone who’s learned some technique here and there, but might not understand the real “why” behind what they’re doing. From there, the pair goes on to address every part of your body that could possibly need some maintenance or repair.
DVD sections include:
- Introduction
- Toolkit Overview
- Ball Techniques
- Global Shear
- Upper Torso
- Shoulders & Chest
- Elbows & Wrists
- Lower Torso
- Knee & its Neighbors
- Feet & Ankles
- Myofascial Educational Demo
One helpful aspect of the DVDs is that the people modeling the techniques are doing so against glass surfaces, either glass tabletops or glass walls. This allows you to see what’s happening with each technique in a clear way that demonstrating against an opaque wall or table would not allow.
RELATED: Yoga Tune Up Therapy Balls vs. Lacrosse Balls vs. Foam Rollers
Anyone who’s tried to teach some of these exercises to a friend or client knows what I mean. You mash yourself against a wall and then the person trying to learn can’t see what you’re doing, what muscle you’re mashing, or what the ball is doing. Problem solved in these videos.
Downsides
The downsides to this kit are minimal. The zipper on the inner pocket of the big mesh bag is not of great quality. So if you do end up using it as a shoulder bag or as a way to organize your things inside your gym bag, just beware that I suspect the zipper won’t put up with a lot of use.
“The lessons you will learn from the DVDs and the techniques you can use with the tools provided can help everyone from desk workers to those recovering from injury.”
The other thing is that the Coregeous ball is a little confusing and challenging to inflate at first. Just remember you’re not going to inflate it all the way like you would a balloon and you don’t want to lose that funny little plastic straw that comes in your kit.
And lastly, some people may find the high production value actually off-putting. Everyone in the DVD is insanely pretty. It’s a little like watching a morning news show. But really, who doesn’t like watching pretty people? It’s an okay thing to put up with.
LEFT: Mesh Gym Bag; RIGHT: Coregeous Ball
My Recommendation
Overall, I think this kit is great for someone who is brand new to self care and wants the tools and instruction to get a broad and thorough education. It’s also good for someone who is really into mobility and self-myofascial release who wants a deeper learning and a fleshed-out set of tools. Either way, you’ll learn the ins and outs of the approach that Kelly and Jill advocate and how to apply it to your whole body.
In addition, if you buy the Treat While You Train Kit, you’ll save $15.00 versus buying all the included items separately.
The Treat While You Train Kit is available for $79.95 at YogaTuneUp.com.